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“We strive to make nutritious food and beverages more accessible and affordable to Filipinos while informing them about the importance of proper nutrition, health and wellness”

–– John Martin Miller, Chairman & CEO, Nestlé Philippines, Inc.

Laki Sa Gatas

Nestlé’s commitment to promoting healthy dietary habits is supported by educational awareness campaigns that aim to give people a better grasp of what good nutrition is and its importance for the achievement of good health and overall wellness.

Launched in 2006, the LAKI SA GATAS initiative aims to educate Philippine public school communities on the value of healthy nutrition and the importance of drinking milk. More than just being educational, this advocacy at its very core seeks to empower public school kids, mums, teachers and educators alike that through balanced health and education— realising one’s dreams and ambitions are possible.

“LAKI SA GATAS”, loosely translated as “Growing Up with Milk”, was born out of the reality of low milk consumption and the increasing number of prevalent cases of malnutrition amongst Filipino children in the lower socio-economic classes.

Now on its 4th year, the LAKI SA GATAS advocacy has visited over 2,700 schools across the country and has reached out to more than 1,7 million school children, over half-a-million mothers and nearly 40,000 educators. This year the advocacy is stronger than ever rolling out to more public school communities with new and exciting innovations that seek to further engage advocacy participants.

As each LAKI SA GATAS session in a school has 3 major event components— kids, mums and teachers sessions—all components this school year have been prepared to be more educational, fun, and engaging.

In the Children’s Session, grades 2 and 3 pupils are treated to fun and learning activities to help them understand healthy nutrition. They are likewise entertained by BEAR BRAND Powdered Milk Drink mascots, “Mama Bear” and “Kuya Bear” (big brother bear).

The highlight of this session is to encourage children’s ambitions. They are given blank paper where they can draw the ambitions they would want to pursue when they grow up. The drawings will serve as a reminder that a healthy mind and body can help them achieve their dreams.

In the Mothers’ Session, the participants are lectured on how to prepare healthy and affordable meals for their families. Mothers are also encouraged to serve their children milk everyday as a means to help give their children the nutrition they need to help them perform well in school.

Educators, meanwhile, are trained on how to address malnutrition in their classes during the Teachers’ Session. They are given tips on how to make teaching healthy nutrition more fun and engaging for children.

Through this programme, we hope to reestablish the value of milk and its vital role and importance for the health of Filipino families across the country.

Nestlé Healthy Kids Program

Towards a Healthier future, 40 Kids at a Time…

Some 25.6% of Filipino children, 6-10 years of age, are found to be underweight, according to the 6th National Nutrition Survey of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI). As part of Nestlé’s mission to nurture generations of Filipino families, the Corporate Affairs Department of Nestlé Philippines, together with the Rotary Club of Caloocan, Business Team Nutrition Management System, Inc., NGOs and Local Government Units pooled their resources to start a 90-day nutrition program for 40 malnourished children aged 7-12 at the Libis Talisay Elementary School in Caloocan.

Aptly called the Nestlé Healthy Kids Program, the feeding program is designed to bring nutrition into the lives of severely malnourished children. The program provides supplementary daily feeding for 90 days. Both the children and their parents go through basic nutrition education — for children so that they become aware of the importance of eating nutritious food early on and for parents so they will realize that nutrition need not be expensive and that they can better nourish their kids with the right food and beverage choices. As economics is a critical factor in malnutrition, the program also provides the parents with livelihood opportunities so that they earn extra income to help support their families.

The livelihood strategy links them up with our other Nestlé livelihood programs such as the Business on Wheels program and the Micro-Distributor program and offers these as an opportunity for the families to support themselves. And finally, to ensure the consistent supply of food for the school, Nestlé also supports the construction of a school garden consisting of basic vegetables that they can grow within school premises.

With the help of the Nestlé Healthy Kids Program, which encompasses daily nutrition, nutrition education, effective weight monitoring, parent education, livelihood opportunities as well as school garden initiatives, Nestlé hopes to be able to make a positive difference in the lives of 40 kids at a time. The Program, which is part of the Nestlé Global Healthy Kids Programme set up by Nestlé S.A. in Vevey, will be scaled up in time to reach communities and public schools located near the Nestlé factories in the Philippines.